Stay With Me
by elohelkae
Summary: Angsty OFC/Stefan one shot based on Sam Smith's song 'Stay With Me' (sorry, I suck at summaries) delena and stelena mentioned (briefly)


**A/N:** I have no words for this one shot. It literally started out as an idea when I listened to Sam Smith's 'Stay With Me' for the first time yesterday and then somehow turned into this 5,900+ word monster. This is proof that I shouldn't write one shots. I think this will just stay a one shot but I'm also considering maybe making it a two shot or writing a prequel. Who knows. I hope you enjoy. Also, I changed up the show's storyline a bit. Ric was able to be killed with the stake Esther made, Elena is still human, and Jeremy isn't a hunter yet.

PS: If you're reading this and you also read Voy a Luchar, huge apologies for the lack of update. Writers block has crapped all over me when it comes to that story. I'm trying to force my way through it so I hope to have chapter 4 up ASAP.

P.S.S: No copyright infringement and all that other good stuff.

* * *

He's there when she reaches her bedroom. The look on his face says everything.

_**Guess it's true, I'm not good at a one-night stand**_

She wants to turn, run from the room. Avoid this conversation for as long as possible. She stays. She learned long ago that avoiding a problem doesn't make it go away.

"So, I assume you heard?" She asks, staring at him. He hasn't spoken yet.

_**But I still need love 'cause I'm just a woman**_

"You love me?" He questions finally. The look in his eyes makes her cringe. The sadness, the pity.

She wants to lie. She doesn't. There's no way to deny it. He heard the words, even though he wasn't there.

_**These nights never seem to go to plan**_

_"You slept with Stefan?" The caramel skinned girl asks. Shock covers the words._

_They've got another problem. Arian, some centuries old vampire has shown up in town, wanting revenge on the founding families. Her family included. A plan has been set up. She's with Bonnie, the witch of the group, the key to the plan. At this moment, the plan should be in full effect. Arian should be here in the next 10 minutes._

_She doesn't mean to tell Bonnie. In fact, she doesn't tell her. Bonnie had taken hold of her arm after performing a protection spell on her. The group doesn't know about this part of the plan. She didn't know until Bonnie had told her, alone and surrounded by trees and the dark night._

_"In case." Bonnie had whispered. She hadn't needed to say anything more._

_Bonnie had gasped and let go of her arm. She'd been confused until the question left Bonnie's lips._

_"I did." She responds, she won't deny it. Not when Bonnie so clearly knows._

_"But.. Elena? Does she know?" Her sister. Her twin, even though they aren't carbon copies. Her hair black where Elena's is brown. Her eyes more hazel than brown where Elena's are brown. Her lips full and pouty where Elena's are thin and heart shaped. Katherine Pierce looks more like Elena than she does._

_"She doesn't."_

_"Jesus, Alexa, how do you think she's gonna react when she finds out?"_

_Anger fills her. Why should she be forced to feel ashamed for doing something selfish, doing something - not because it will benefit someone else - but because she wants to? She won't. She refuses to. Not with Stefan. Not with something that felt so right, that **feels** so right._

_"I don't know, Bonnie. And I'm sorry, but I can't find it in myself to care. It was only one night, that's all it will ever be." She wants to add "Elena has Damon" but she refrains. It would be pointless to state the obvious. Elena has Damon and Stefan and even Matt. Elena has Stefan even though Stefan doesn't have Elena. Elena has always been able to have anything she wants, and she loves her sister too much to hold it against her._

_Bonnie pauses. A few beats of silence pass before she speaks again. "You love him." It's not a question._

_"I don't." She denies it quickly, spitting out the words like they burn her tongue._

_"You do," Bonnie says, "you love Stefan. I can feel it."_

_"Don't tell anyone, please." Alexa begs. She knows she can't lie to Bonnie._

_"You know I won't." Bonnie says sincerely. Then she looks around. "Arian's here." She says it quietly._

_"Are you sure?" Alexa whispers. She doesn't see him anywhere. He can't be here. Not yet. Klaus still hasn't shown up. They need Klaus for this to work. Bonnie's the key to killing Arian, but Klaus is the key to making it possible for Bonnie to kill him._

_"Yes. I can feel something supernatural on the sacred ground. It's a vampire. The spirits aren't happy, but they don't have the ability to do anything about it. They're mad."_

_Alexa feels her heart racing. Klaus isn't here yet. She repeats the words, out loud this time._

_"I know." Bonnie's eyes say it all. She's worried and nervous and scared. She doesn't think she can kill Arian if Klaus doesn't fulfill his end of the plan._

_Bonnie is strong, she is powerful. But Arian, he's centuries old. Nearly 960 years old, they'd learned. Bonnie is 17. Bonnie isn't powerful enough to kill him, not unless he's weakened to begin with. That's where Klaus comes in. He's the only one physically strong enough to take out Arian long enough for Bonnie to kill him. Thanks to Caroline and her flirtation skills, she'd gotten Klaus to agree to help. The original plan was to get him to kill Arian, but he'd refused. His reasoning was that "they could use a challenge every once and awhile."_

_They'd put the plan together, but they needed bate. Someone that could lure Arian into coming onto this sacred ground, where Bonnie's powers are doubled. Who better to lure him than a member of one of the families he wants dead, out in the open for him to kill? Damon's idea was to use one of the random Fells, but Alexa wouldn't let an innocent person who knows nothing about the supernatural die because of a supernatural being. That's why she volunteered. And she knew that if she didn't, Elena or Jeremy would. They tried to anyway. She refused to let them, for this exact reason. She's probably going to die tonight, if Klaus doesn't show._

_The vampire steps into view. Both of them let out a breath of relief. It's Stefan._

_"What are you doing here?" Bonnie asks._

_"I had a feeling we couldn't count on Klaus, so I left Damon to take care of the first part of the plan. Looks like I was right." There's something about the way he's acting. Awkward, like he's just intruded on a personal conversation. Like he's heard something he knows he wasn't meant to hear..._

_And that's when Alexa realizes. With a gasp, she takes in his subdued look. He **heard**. He knows. She knows he heard and so does Bonnie._

_Before anyone can say anything, a scream leaves her mouth as she's thrown backwards. She hits something hard - a tree - and the breath is knocked from her lungs as her back takes the impact. She gasps in air as all hell breaks loose._

_Arian is standing where she was just moments ago, a twisted smirk on his face. Stefan's on him before she can blink, slamming his body into Arian's, sending him soaring away from her._

_"Bonnie!" Stefan yells before Arian has a chance to get back up. Bonnie hasn't moved. She looks like she's paralyzed. She shakes her head like she's trying to clear it and then turns her attention to Arian, who is already back up._

_Bonnie raises her hand at Arian, and then squeezes it shut. His leg gives out from under him and a scream leaves his lips. He looks up with a psychotic smile and stands, his bones snapping loudly back together._

_Alexa can practically feel Bonnie's worry as Arian starts walking towards them. Bone after bone breaks with each step but he keeps coming. There's blood all over his jeans and shirt, his own blood. He keeps coming. He looks so indestructible she wants to close her eyes._

_Alexa's suddenly even more thankful that Bonnie had put that protection spell on her. Then she realizes. Bonnie and Stefan will fight to the death to keep her from dying, even if she will come back. Stefan doesn't know that she'll come back, but Bonnie does and yet she keeps fighting Arian, doing everything she can to hold him off, even as blood trickles from her nose. Alexa just knows Stefan will do the same._

_Her heart breaks. Arian has made it clear he'll kill anyone who gets in his way. After he kills her, she'll come back. But Stefan and Bonnie won't._

_"Stop!" Alexa yells. They won't die for her. She won't let them._

_"What?" Stefan exclaims, staring back at her like she's crazy. Arian takes the window of opportunity to charge at Stefan. Before she knows what's happening, Arian has Stefan slammed into a tree to the left of her, a huge, wide branch in Stefan's stomach. She can see the other end of the branch, impaled completely through the tree. There's no way he can get out of that. The only good thing about it is that he at least won't die trying to save her. He'll heal from that and he'll live._

_Bonnie's staring at Arian hard now. She can tell by the way he grabs his head that he's being given an aneurysm._

_She feels useless. The pathetic human who gets to sit and watch as her friends protect her while she can do nothing to help. It wasn't supposed to go like this. She has no clue how she's going to get Bonnie to stop. She's stopped Stefan. She has to figure out a way to stop Bonnie now._

_Alexa sucks in a breath as Arian is suddenly standing over her. His hands wrap around her throat and he lifts her up like she's nothing, her feet dangling above the ground. Sharp pain shoots up and down her back from the movement and she claws at his hands, wanting to get away from the pain and lack of air._

_Arian is scarier up close. His eyes are blood red, the veins around them moving wildly under his skin. His mouth is open as he smirks at her crazily, sharp fangs completing the look. He looks terrifying. He is terrifying._

_"NO!" Bonnie screams. The trees behind where Bonnie is, still trying to stop Arian, go up in flames._

_Alexa can see the golden light dancing around in front of her eyes, hear the crackling of the fire. It reminds her of Alaric. After Jenna and John died, they'd stayed up all night in front of the fireplace in her house, drinking and laughing and crying at memories. They'd bonded that night. She never told Ric he'd become family, or how thankful she was to have him there. Taking care of the three of them even though he had no obligation. Teaching them how to defend themselves against vampires. Now he's dead and she can't tell him. Maybe she can find him on the other side before the protection spell brings her back._

_Thinking about that night makes her remember the stake gun in her sleeve. It was Ric's. In all the chaos, she'd forgot about strapping it around her wrist earlier._

_Alexa needs air so badly she can barely think straight. Dropping her right hand, she aims for his chest and, hoping it's his heart, punches hard enough for the mechanism to trigger and the stake to be released._

_Arian drops her back to her feet, a hand still loosely around her throat the only thing keeping her up. Judging by the pure rage on his face, she's guessing she missed his heart._

_Within a second, he's yanked the stake out of the middle of his chest, called her a bitch, and replaced the hand around her throat with his fangs._

_Alexa screams as his fangs slide into her bruised neck and then a smile breaks through the pain._

_She can hear Bonnie screaming that she needs more power, she can hear Arian's bones breaking and his groans of pain even as he sucks down her blood. She's a Gilbert and he wants to kill her and he's not going down without succeeding._

_Alexa and Jeremy put vervain in everything; their coffee, water, soda, and on occasion, alcohol. They drink the herb every single day. They even put it in their food. Today, she'd drank more vervain than she ever has. Three bottles of vervain filled water._

_She feels woozy and lightheaded - from her previous strangling and current bloodloss - by the time Arian starts gagging. He yanks away from her and she barely registers the pain when his fangs tear through her skin in his haste to get away from her blood. She falls onto her knees when she's finally out of his grip._

_Arian is coughing and hacking and gripping his throat, her blood covering his chin and lips. He hadn't been gentle. Bonnie is taking the opening, breaking his bones repeatedly as the vervain burns his insides, a vicious snap sending the bone in his arm right through his skin. Stefan is suddenly there, shoving a stake in Arian's heart. Stefan pushes the stake so far in, only a few inches of the end stick out of Arian's chest. Alexa almost doesn't think it will kill him. The look on Stefan's face might scare her if she wasn't confused as hell._

_She'd heard Stefan screaming, but she hadn't really known why. Slowly glancing over at where he had previously been, she sees now that it was because he had been pulling the branch out of the tree - and out of his stomach._

_Alexa stares at Arian's veiny face as Stefan blurs over to her. Bonnie lights his gray body on fire for good measure and then kneels down in front of her. There's blood all over Bonnie's nose and lips and she's pale and sweaty. Alexa reaches out and takes one of Bonnie's shaking hands into her own shaky, cold one._

_Stefan tears into his wrist and puts it directly into her mouth before she can stop him. She feels like she's probably going to die soon, so she wouldn't have stopped him anyway. The metallic tang fills her mouth. She wants to pull away but she knows she needs it, so she swallows the blood until the wound on his wrist closes._

_The blood starts healing her quickly. When the healing reaches her back, the pain makes her fall forward. Someone catches her. 'Probably Stefan,' Alexa thinks. Bonnie's in no state to catch her. Her back spasms in pain as his blood tries to heal it and she can't stop from crying - she's been crying since Arian had thrown her into the tree in the first place._

_Stefan's wrist is back at her mouth, a new wound bit into it. She shakes her head. "I'm f-fine."_

_"You need more." Stefan says, his voice firm._

_"Stefan's right. You probably broke or shattered something in your back when you hit the tree." Bonnie says, still gripping her hand._

_The pain is horrible so she drinks from Stefan's wrist without anymore convincing. Stefan bites new wounds into his wrist for her until the pain starts to subside._

_Alexa pulls away from his wrist and lays her head on something warm and soft. His chest, she realizes. Her mind goes back to what she knows he heard earlier, but she's too tired to care and he feels like a pillow right now._

_"You need some too, Bonnie." She tells the exhausted girl._

_"I'll be fine." Bonnie says quitely, squeezing her hand._

_Alexa meets Bonnie's eyes, trying to beg her with just a look. Bonnie doesn't look good. More importantly, she looks too tired to argue, which is very un-Bonnie-like. "Please?" She whispers._

_"Alright, just a little." Bonnie says tiredly._

_Stefan holds out his wrist and Alexa watches Bonnie drink a little bit of the blood before moving his arm away and nodding at Stefan in thanks._

_"Let's get you home." Stefan says to Alexa, helping her up gently._

_The fire still burns the trees and with an exhausted flick of Bonnie's hand, the bright flames stop. Alexa watches Bonnie take out her phone and put it to her ear._

_"Somebody needs to come bury Arian's body." Is all Bonnie says before hanging up._

_There's sudden clapping in front of them and they all look up to see Klaus leaning against a tree with a smug look on his face. "Wonderful!" He says._

_Stefan blurs from Alexa's side so fast she almost falls. He's got Klaus shoved against a tree, demanding to know why he didn't show up when he was supposed to._

_She's never seen Stefan so mad._

_"Where were you?" Bonnie asks, a glare on her pale face._

_"Well, love, I was making a point. I am not some lapdog you can have sweet Caroline manipulate into doing your bidding. I do hope you've learned your lesson. I don't enjoy being made to look like a fool by a pretty face." Klaus pushes Stefan back a few steps, smooths out his shirt, and disappears from sight._

_"Asshole." Stefan mutters, walking back over to Alexa and Bonnie._

_Alexa sighs, she's too tired to deal with Klaus. "Let's just go."_

_-;_

_When they get back to Alexa's, Bonnie cleans off her face in the bathroom. She goes over to the couch, lying down and snoring quietly a few seconds later. Alexa figures Bonnie's gonna be staying the night. She covers Bonnie with a blanket and turns the light off. Elena and Jeremy won't be back from the safety of the lake house until morning, so Bonnie should be able to get uninterrupted rest._

_Leaving the living room, she pauses at her reflection in the mirror. She looks like hell. Her eyes are puffy and bloodshot, her nose is red, her face is pale, dark bags are under her eyes, and her neck is covered in drying blood._

_Alexa walks into the kitchen, where Stefan's washing his blood from his hands. "You don't have to stay, you know? We'll be fine. I'm gonna go to sleep, Bonnie's already passed out on the couch."_

_Stefan dries his hands off, nodding. "I think I'm gonna go for a hunt. Are you okay?"_

_"Me? I'll be fine. What about you? You did have a huge branch in your stomach." She tries to joke, forcing a smile._

_"I'd say it was more of a tree." He smiles back. Stefan's playing along and she's thankful. Her smile isn't forced this time. Everyone says Stefan is too serious, too broody, but she doesn't see it._

_"See you later?" He asks._

_Alexa nods. "See you later."_

_He leaves through the back doors and she goes upstairs to wash away the blood and memories of this night._

_-;_

_Alexa gasps, sitting up in bed and choking on nothing. She quickly turns her bedside lamp on, looking around the room. It's empty._

_Her nightmare had felt real. She'd woken up in the dead of night for some reason and sat up to see Arian, in her room in front of her window. He was staring at her and her blood was all over his chin. As she'd watched, frozen in terror, unable to move, his face had changed into its vampire version and he'd started walking towards her. She'd woken up just as he'd climbed on her bed and wrapped his fingers around her neck._

_She rubs her eyes and looks over at the clock. 4:03 AM. She'd only slept for 3 hours. She gets out of bed. She's sweating even though she's wearing a tank top and shorts._

_After getting downstairs, she checks on Bonnie and then walks quietly into the kitchen. After drinking a glass of freezing cold water, she goes back upstairs._

_He's there when she reaches her bedroom. The look on his face says everything._

* * *

_Alexa answers the front door. Stefan's on the other side. They're both hurting. She'd just witnessed Ric die. Again. A vampire who hunts vampires Ric, but nonetheless, still Ric. And when they'd all thought Stefan and Damon were going to die because Klaus had died, Elena had made her choice and she'd chose Damon._

_Stefan looks completely devastated. Alexa swears she hears her heart crack a little at his hreatbroken expression. She's always had a soft spot for Stefan. His green eyes are wet and he really just looks like needs some kind of comfort before he falls apart. She knows she must look close to the same. Ric dying for the second time hadn't been any easier than the first time._

_"I'm sorry. I just - I don't know where else to go. She's there with..." He doesn't say anymore. She figures it out on her own._

_'She's there with Damon.'_

_Alexa moves aside, opening the door wider for him to come in. After she closes the door, she turns and wraps her arms around Stefan's waist, hugging him tightly. Hoping she can hold him together just by squeezing hard enough._

_"What?" Stefan asks, sounding confused._

_"You look like you could use a hug." Alexa explains in a whisper._

_Slowly, his arms wrap around her shoulders. They stay like that for a while, in a comfortable embrace._

_"You want something to drink? I don't have any B negative, but I do have coffee." She jokes. She feels his quiet laugh._

_"Coffee sounds good."_

_They drink their coffee in comfortable silence for a while. Alexa gets 2 bowls of chocolate ice cream and convinces him to watch '10 Things I Hate About You' with her. Afterwards, she gets out the alcohol and they sit around and drink while he tells her about all the bands he's seen live and the places he's been in the last 150 years._

_Alexa's laying on the floor with her legs on the seat of the couch next to him, a blanket balled up underneath her head while he tells her about what the Eiffel Tower is like in person, when it happens. She doesn't know when it happened and neither does he but her legs are in his lap and his thumb is rubbing the bare skin of her calf._

_They both seem to notice at the same time and sudden tension fills the room, the airy conversation about Paris gone. His thumb continues though. There's nothing wrong with his thumb drawing circles on her calf, but there is something wrong with how she feels herself suddenly reacting to his touch. His hands are soft and warm and she finds herself wanting to feel them everywhere. Her heart is racing and she has to pay close attention to keeping her breathing even._

_Their eyes meet and his thumb stops. Can he hear her heart racing? Is her reaction to him obvious? Because she knows she isn't doing a good job at hiding it._

_Alexa removes her legs from his grasp, sitting up. "I'll go get us another drink." She says even though her own is still half full. She stands up, turns quickly to leave, and of course, because her life is a cliché love story, her feet get tangled up in the blanket and she falls backwards. Thankfully, she lands on the empty cushion and not on Stefan's lap. They both laugh awkwardly as she unwraps the blanket from around her ankles._

_She glances over at Stefan and knows she's screwed. He's finishing off his own glass and his neck is long and smooth and his adamsapple bobs as he swallows. Yup, she's screwed. She'll never be able to look at Stefan the same way again. He sets his glass down and catches her staring. She quickly looks away and they sit awkwardly for a few moments. They look over at eachother at the same time._

_Alexa wouldn't be able to tell you who leaned in first. All she knows is that one second, they were looking at eachother. The next, his hands are on her back under her shirt and she's on her knees on the couch with her hands buried in his hair and they're kissing like their lives depend on it. And it's amazing._

_She pulls him up, not letting their lips disconnect as she tries to lead them through the living room to the stairs. Stefan lifts her and she wraps her legs around his waist. She feels like she's flying when he uses his vampire speed to bring them into her bedroom in barely a second. She stretches her arm out, pushing the door closed._

_Stefan sets her on her feet, grabbing the hem of her blue t-shirt and pulling it up until they have no choice but to stop kissing. Alexa lifts her arms and he pulls the shirt over her head, leaving her in her black bra. She grabs the hem of his soft black shirt and does the same. They stare at eachother._

_"Are we really-" "Doing this? Yeah, I think so." She interrupts, breathing the words out. She's still shocked herself._

_"But what about..." Stefan doesn't say her name, but she gets it. He doesn't want to talk about Elena, but he loves her. He's worried about what this will do to their friendship if they do this, considering he's in love with her sister._

_The alcohol has fogged up her judgment enough to make her gutsy and stupid. "We won't tell her. It will just be between me and you. A one-night thing." If she were 100% sober, she would've stopped and tried to figure out what these sudden reactions towards him meant, why she always has such a soft spot for Stefan, why his presence alone can make her feel happy. She would've stopped to figure out why the idea of this being a one-night thing makes her feel so weird, and not put it down to one-night stands being seen as trashy and not wanting to be seen like that. But Alexa does none of this. And she'll regret it in the end._

* * *

Alexa shrugs, rubbing her arm. She's not good with this. She never has been. It was supposed to be a one-night thing. She isn't supposed to be in love with him. She's not supposed to love her sister's exboyfriend.

"Really? I ask if you love me and you shrug?" Stefan asks in disbelief.

* * *

_Alexa doesn't know how much time has passed. Her heart is still pounding at what she and Stefan just did. They're lying under her comforter, completely naked, staring at the ceiling._

_The first time she'd done this was with her exboyfriend Josh, when she was in 10th grade. They'd been together for a while and they were both ready. It was uncomfortable and not to mention, painful. They broke up shortly after because it was incredibly awkward between them after that._

_Her second time was with her childhood best friend, Tyler. They never told anyone. It happened in his room, after another of his dad Richard's loud arguments with Carol, Tyler's mom. Carol had stormed out and Richard had done the same. Tyler had been upset, his parents were always fighting. She'd been there for him and somehow they ended up entwined in his bed together. It had been comfortable and familiar and good._

_Alexa doesn't have the right words to describe what her third time was like, here in her bed with Stefan Salvatore. The only words that come to mind are hot, steamy, passionate. Chill enducing._

_'Yes.' Alexa decides. Definitely chill enducing._

_She looks over at the clock and then quickly looks away. She'd forgotten about that picture sitting on her nightstand. Her and Elena, hugging tightly with huge smiles on their faces._

_Guilt floods through her. What was she thinking? She just had sex with her sister's exboyfriend - who she broke up with not even 24 hours ago. Elena will hate her if she ever finds out. And Alexa wouldn't blame her._

_"I should probably go." Stefan says, likes he's reading her thoughts. She wonders if he can feel her guilt. She still doesn't quite know everything that comes with being a vampire._

**_I don't want you to leave_**

_Alexa's filled with a sudden ache at the thought of him leaving. She realizes then that she wants him to stay. She doesn't want him to go. She wants him to stay. She wants him to pull her into his arms and hold her as she falls asleep. This wasn't supposed to happen._

_"Yeah." Alexa says. This is a one time experience. It's best if he leaves now. Before she can think anymore about how badly she wants him to stay._

_She sits up, leaning back against the headboard and holding the comforter against her chest._

_She watches Stefan sit up. Their hands are so close on the blanket, fingers nearly touching. She wants to close the gap._

**_Will you hold my hand?_**

_Then Stefan's hand is gone and she looks away as he puts his clothes on._

_After he pulls his shirt on, their eyes meet. "Are we alright?" He sounds nervous._

_Alexa forces a bright smile onto her face. She's gotten good at faking a smile (she's gotten good at faking a lot of things when it comes to how she feels). "Of course we are. Now go on so I can sleep, us humans get tired easier than you almighty vampires, y'know?"_

_Stefan smiles. It's worth putting on the act to see the genuine smile on his face. She loves his smile. And with panic filling her, she realizes she loves him. She wishes she would've figured this out sooner._

**_Oh, won't you stay with me_**

_Alexa waits until she hears the front door close to let it sink in that she's in love with a man who will never love her back because he's in love with her sister._

_She wraps her arms around her legs and cries silently into her knees. She's never felt a pain this strong._

_She wishes he'd come back._

**_'Cause you're all I need_**

"What am I supposed to say? That I'm in love with you? That it kills me to see you everyday and know that I can't walk up and kiss you? That it makes me feel psychically sick to realize I'll never get to call you mine? I love you. I'm In love with you. Does it make you happy to hear that? Because it doesn't make me happy to say it. It makes me feel like someone's ripping my heart out to say it to you, knowing it doesn't matter. The only difference is that I don't get to die, I get to suffer and watch you look at me like I'm some poor wounded animal." Alexa knows she's crying by the time she finishes her rant. She can feel the wetness on her cheeks, the tears blurring her vision.

Stefan hasn't moved. He's frozen in place. He looks guilty and sad and everything she doesn't want to see on his face. He looks like he doesn't know what to say. She knows there's nothing he can say. Then he's hugging her. She hates it and loves it at the same time. She can't stop herself from holding onto him like he's her life raft. She wants to push him away but she can't.

**_This ain't love, it's clear to see_**

Alexa loves Stefan and Stefan still loves Elena and Elena loves Damon and Damon loves Elena and no matter how that plays out, there is no corner for Alexa in that triangle. She knows this. The words repeat in her head constantly. '_Stefan loves Elena_'.

She wants to scream at him, beg him to leave because she can't deal with this right now, but she can't deal with him leaving more. It's been months of hell and she can't pretend to be okay with watching him leave.

_**But darling, stay with me**_

"Stay." Alexa whispers. "Please."

Stefan tenses and then squeezes her tighter. "Okay." He whispers.

It feels like all the energy leaves her body with that one word, replaced by relief. She wants him to stay. And now she knows he will. She's crying harder then, everything she's held in since that night 5 months ago all releasing at once.

**_Why am I so emotional? No it's not a good look, gain some self control_**

Alexa pushes it all back down. She won't lose it. Not now. She'll keep it together.

Everything in her life seems right when she's in Stefan's arms. The horrors of her life go away when his arms are around her. Nearly dying at the hands of a 900 year old vampire a few hours ago, vampires constantly trying to kill her family, an original hybrid using her sister's blood to turn werewolves into hybrids, a witch trying to protect them all, being in love with a vampire who doesn't love her back; it all goes away.

In his arms, she can pretend none of it is real.

**_Deep down, I know this never works_**

They end up under her covers in the darkness of her room. His arms stay around her the whole time. She feels safe for the first time in years. For the first time in as long as she can remember, wrapped up in Stefan's arms playing pretend, Alexa feels happy.

_**But you can lay with me so it doesn't hurt**_

_**Oh, won't you stay with me?**_


End file.
